The Oakland Raiders were torn apart defensively on Sunday afternoon, giving up 42 points to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. And despite a late rally from Carson Palmer and the Raider offense, it was too-little, too-late as the team dropped to 3-5 this season.
Buccaneers vs. Raiders 2012: Oakland’s defense unable to contain Doug Martin
Martin had one of the better statistical games in recent NFL history, rushing for 251 yards and multiple touchdowns. And he did almost all of it in the second half.
Ezra Shaw
Silver and Black Pride, which is SB Nation’s Raiders blog, had an extensive recap of all that transpired on Sunday afternoon.
Martin had just 31 yards with no touchdowns at the half but by the time the game was over he had 251 yards rushing and three touchdowns. He had three huge touchdown runs in the third and fourth quarter-45, 67, and 70 yards.
“We didn’t tackle well.” Dennis Allen said of the big runs the Raiders surrendered. “I thought [the Buccaneers] did a good job of blocking, I thought the runner did a great job of running, and I think we had an opportunity to make a few plays and missed some tackles.
Martin’s big day came as a pretty big surprise. The Raiders entered Week 9 as the 11th-best run defense in the NFL, and they had really shown signs of improvement in recent weeks. And considering how little Martin did in the first half, his breakout in the third and fourth quarter was something to behold.
Oakland is set to face yet another talented tailback next weekend when they travel to face Ray Rice and the Baltimore Ravens. Unless the run defense can get back to their normal form, it is likely going to be another long day for the Silver and Black.
See More:
